Press freedom in the news 10/21/08

In the Philippines
today, the news that charges have been brought against the alleged masterminds
in the murder of Philippine journalist Marlene Garcia-Esperat is running in many of the country's major news outlets.

Also making headlines at the The Associated Press this morning is the news that Afghan journalism student Parwez Kambakhsh, who had previously been sentenced to death on charges of blasphemy, has had the death penalty dropped but has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. CPJ sent a protest letter in January to Afghan President Hamid Karzai, condemning the treatment of Kambakhsh, who was accused of illegally distributing an article that allegedly questioned the tenets of Islam.

Andrew Levinson served as CPJ's media officer from 2007 to 2010, promoting the organization's work on multiple platforms.